My Blog - Jeff Clarke

Fonetography - The Exhibition Brindley Theatre Gallery 8th - 22nd January 2011 In 2010 sixty eight people of varying ages, from as young as 6 to over 70 years, and with limited experience of photography, tookmobile phones cameras into some of the Woodland Trust sites within the Runcorn and Warrington areas in North-West England.They explored the potential of the mobile phone to introduce them to their local woodlands and to look at them from a fresh perspective. {flv}FONETOGRAPHYex{/flv} 270 images were selected for the exhibition which was placed at The Brindley Theatre gallery in Runcorn between the 8th & 22nd January 2011The Woodland Trust & Jeff Clarke Ecology would like to thank all those who took part in the Fonetography pr...

An Apple A Day {yoogallery src=[/images/stories/blog/waxwing2]} All images unless otherwise stated © Jeff Clarke 2010 It's not often one gets the chance to have two bites at the cherry, or in this case an apple. I was returning from a job in the south of Cheshire and diverted towards Tesco's in Northwich. There had been reports of upwards of 120 Waxwings in the area. The birds were obvious on arrival and by following their flightpath I soon found their favoured feeding site, an apple tree on the nearby railway embankment. Just for once the site gave eye level opportunities, which makes a change from the usual 'up the bum' shots you get of these  birds, as they frantically feed on berries of a Rowan above your head. Also their feeding ...

Revolution {yoogallery src=[/images/stories/blog/revolution]} All images unless otherwise stated © Jeff Clarke 2010 If your work takes you outside at curious times of day compared to the mass of humanity then you may be one of those lucky people who get to see some wondrous and seldom observed events, that few others get to witness. The majority of my most vivid encounters seem to coincide with the rising and setting of the sun. Is it because few people are abroad at this time and therefore wildlife is less intimidated by our oppressive presence? Is it simply the changing of the shift that maximises opportunities at both ends of the day? Is it the stilling of the air and a keening of the senses? Or more likely the fact that these factors c...

Birds n' Berries {yoogallery src=[/images/stories/blog/bohemians]} All images unless otherwise stated © Jeff Clarke 2010 Sharp air, trees laden with rime frost, azure blue sky, wonderful clarity and low sun. The temptation was just too great. I took up my camera and decided to take the day off in pursuit of charismatic bohemians. Waxwings are wonderfully entertaining birds, though they are not always easy to locate. This year has seen a significant irruption into the UK and many flocks have been noted around the north-west, but I wanted to find my own. I set off for the urban heart of Warrington and began checking out blocks of Rowan trees. The berries of this particular tree are seemingly irresistible to this bird during the winter months....

A New Dawn, A New Day {yoogallery src=[/images/stories/blog/newdawn]} All images unless otherwise stated © Jeff Clarke 2010 A pale patch of sky to the east is the prelude to the stirrings of diurnal life as a new dawn approaches. I walk out along Hale Head in preparation for a day's surveying. The crunching of my footsteps on the gravel track seems amplified in the stillness of the chilly air. There's enough light now to see my own condensed breath. Seemingly within moments the lights on the south bank of the Mersey, which moments earlier had seemed so luminous, are already losing their battle against the march of the day. A small bank of cloud begins to glow, under-lit by the, as yet unseen, sun.I quicken my pace as I realise that this is ...